The Right Time
by Trilver
Summary: X's very 1st mission, with a cockroach reploid, a tree...nevermind...
1. Worthless cans

The wind curled up the spiral stairs, carrying dust particles on its back to the very top storey of what was supposed to be a fortress. Every inch on the staircase was painted deep in red. The walls were sobbing as they stood wearily over another mass of metallic bodies, each had a grayish-white 'W' tattooed on blank obvious spaces of their armor.  
  
"How?" A shadow suddenly roared among a heap of forced dismantled limbs. "How did he make a miracle comeback? How did he escape his death?!"  
  
Most likely, that shadow was the only one who was fully intact.  
  
He squeezed his eyes shut in anger and slammed his arms against his fallen comrades. Not far away, an emotionally exhausted human shuffled his feet through the mess and kicked one of the smaller pieces into the wall next to it and caused it to crumble a little a the point of contact. The human instead, was extremely vulnerable due to his age, hugged his leg close to his chest and hopped around with the other in shear pain.  
  
"Ouch! Worthless cans!"  
  
The cry made the shadow cringed and immediately snarled, "We wouldn't have been thrashed like cans if you just buy better materials for our armours!"  
  
"Silence, Bass! It's because of the noodle in your thick skull which cost so much that I couldn't afford them! And the bigger problem is that you can't use that noodle of yours for simple tasks such as defeating Megaman!" The old scientist argued.  
  
Bass sorted out his thoughts and returned fire, "Simple? Simple?! Megaman has all the skills of the so called 'robot masters' you've made and I'm sure he don't even need them, all it takes is that stupid buster of his and we can kiss our ass in heaven! Are you sure that you are fit to be 'DOCTOR' Wily?"  
  
Before Bass could continue mocking the insane doctor, a shredded lab coat flew over his face and a cheap leathered shoe flattened his nose. "You can kiss your ass all you want later! Get up and collect the parts...no, wait, I've got an even super idea!"  
  
"A stupid idea, that's what it is!" Bass chuckled and heard his nose creaked under the pressure of the rubber soles. "Ouch! Hey, take your stinking foot off my handsome nose!"  
  
"Smart talk later, intelligent ideas now! Yes, yes, I've got it! I'll sell all these parts and buy me the best of the best! Bass, your services are most needed, sell them all! And once I get the materials...no more robot masters! Instead, you shall have a baby brother!"  
  
"A b.b.brother?! That's so cool! Sure dad, I'll get cracking immediately!" He jumped onto his metallic boots, almost toppling the scientist and for the first time, followed his father's ridiculous instructions. "I'll get the best there is, I'll be the best older brother!"  
  
Bass grabbed a wolf-like robotic head with its sad purple eyelids dangling as Bass shook it, "Did you hear that, Treble? We're gonna get a new brother!"  
  
Dr. Wily---note to myself, make a much more mature robot than this empty can... 


	2. Infiltration

Something clicked, sparks ignited, and with that purplish energy which is white-hot in its core, the trusty boots propelled its user into the abyss of the night. His armor allowed him to shift from tree to tree without betraying him.  
  
Not a slight twitch beneath the artificial skin, steadily breaking apart the still night air. His mind was set on the mission, no side quests, no attention should be drawn to him, especially not a single one from his enemies.  
  
Once he has reached his destination, the infiltration went into progress immediately. The security system surrounding the compound was particularly set to detect any mechanical objects or life which are defined as a dreaded Wily bot. However, he was unlike the robot masters, his body was not made from cheap materials and never-durable designs. Instead, his designs came so close to biological life forms that the security devices recognize him as a human. Much like the one who was built before him by Dr. Thomas Light but for strange unknown reasons, was not activated. So he was technically the first of his kind to be kicked into this partially insane world.  
  
Deep within his internal system, a faded line of comments scrolled into view as he requested for a full scan. Sensors pick up multiple Light bots and life forms  
  
Sensors pick up no Light bots active within the vicinity  
  
WARNING  
  
Multiple life forms are too close for comfort  
  
Suggestion: Immediate Termination of life forms  
  
"Woah, woah, hold it! Internal computer, run a scan on these life forms and match them. If possible, state the general species of their origin." System comply  
  
Running scan  
  
Matching  
  
Ugh  
  
"ugh what computer?" CCCan it bbbe stated later? "What?! You're a computer! I give the command and you obey! There's no later,... never mind, just give me the coordinates of the nearest threat!" Whatever you say Bass (0,9) (6,2) (1,50) With that, he plotted his sneak attack, not knowing the size of his opponent, he pounced. He followed the seemingly enlarged shadow around the corner of the building and was shocked to find absolutely nothing. Even though Bass was in a state of confusion, his programme of being a calm skilled fighter kicked in, ready for anything which the enemy would throw at him. He traced the target from the readings of his internal radar, closer and closer.  
  
"Heheh, you're cornered you pathetic life form, prepare to meet your...?"  
  
A big fat cockroach flew at the sight of Bass and where else will any cockroach choose to escape but heading right into the face of its aggressor- --Kamikaze style!  
  
"AHHHHhhh! Get it off! Damn good for nothing computer! I hate insects! I'm going to rip your circuits personally and replace it with noodles, coz' that's what you really need!"  
  
Bass frantically waved his hands everywhere in attempt to slap the bug away until a plasma buster beat him to it. He was rejoiced by the departure of the creature which a warrior like him should not be afraid of, but was placed in another situation; he woke the Light bots which were on patrol. He lost a bag of sweat at that instant but managed to balance himself and glare arrogantly back at his audience.  
  
Pretending to look cool, Bass folded his arms and pumped his chest out, "No point fighting me to get me away from Dr. Light's little secret lab under his house, because you can't defeat the magnificent Bass! Ha ha ha." With that he curled one of his black clad arm and released an almighty sock into one of the Light bots with a pair of scissors on his head. The rest responded by circling him while their ring-leader demanded, "What do you want Bass? Dr. Wily had already stolen half the blueprints of the new robot designs, I thought he should be smart enough to figure out the rest?"  
  
"Tsk tsk, I'm sure that he is capable of that, but it is a must to 'know your enemy,' that's why I will get the rest of the blueprints! Now step aside you little nail-clipper, and pray for a quick death when my 'baby' brother and I come for you!" That last sentence got on all the nerves of the circle of twisted household items and they all lunged at him, trying to be the first who would rip him apart. Not to mention, venting their hatred on him of how Dr. Wily reprogrammed them against their will.  
  
Within seconds, Bass had already made his buster through the six paper-thin armors and set them in one corner, badly hidden. But long enough to allow Bass to get what he wanted before the rest of the patrols smell something 'fishy' in the air. 


	3. A theory of the ponytail of

When morning came, the next shift of patrols woke up a little late as usual but they didn't make much difference about the event which occurred in the previous dark hours. A boisterous blue kid bounded into the crowd as the commotion swelled around the six severed robots. Some were giggling while most were typically just pointing and having a spicy gossip. But not to Megaman/Rock, he blamed himself for being a robot who needs to sleep because, for all he knew, his dear father might have been the one laying there with the cockroaches playing a few rounds of pokers on his belly instead.  
  
Speak of the devil; the bearded benevolent professor shoved his massive body of biological object into the heart of the fuss to stand next to his masterpiece.  
  
"Rock, what happened here?"  
  
Rock rubbed his baby-smooth chin, "I'm not sure dad, but I think its Bass, oh no! Did you lose anymore blueprints?"  
  
"...I have a very strong feeling that I have..." Dr. Light cringed as he remembered leaving them exposed while he slept out of exhaustion.  
  
"I'm sorry dad, I extremely am! Sorry that I've disappointed you yet again. One of Dr. Wily's robot masters had done this once I was at his castle and now ... Bass has made off with the second half of the plans." His eyes sunk as he felt the humongous responsibility of protecting the ones he love weighing down on him just like whenever he faces Dr. Wily and his crazy contraptions.  
  
"No, it's my fault, Rock! But now is not the time for self-reflection, we have to get the blueprints back or else, even your yet-to-be brother won't be able to stop whatever Dr. Wily is about to unleash upon this sleepy world! sigh I guess we have to count on you once more son, make me proud for the umpteenth time." Dr. Light's rosy cheeks puffed with warmth as he smiled to comfort his 'number one' son.  
  
Rock received the encouragement as any other innocent twelve year-old would and nodded to confirm it.  
  
Back at the central spiral tower of the Skull Fortress, the devil was still in his frame, just waiting to be filled in with the best of the best. His creator was trying to solve the problem of he's enemy's potentially- invincible robot, which hinders his path towards achieving a tyrant-ruled planet, by none other than himself.  
  
"Bass! Why is Centaurman's tail still here?"  
  
Bass on the other hand, was nothing like his dad; well, he wasn't self- obsessed to say the least. He was simply dying to meet his brother and together with Treble, they shall paint the town red in blood, the blood of Megaman.  
  
"All of you! Prepare to lose your foolish hero! Because...because...(Thunk!),ouch!" Bass fidgeted and shot his killer-red eyes to the source of the attack. The sun's beams were scattered by his presence at the balcony, causing Dr. Wily to get dizzy and frustrated of the shivering lights.  
  
"Quit blocking the light, can't you tell that the electricity is no longer circulating the lights in this whole condemned building? And keep it down! Can't you see that I'm trying to work here? I don't want half the city at my door step when your brother is still in construction, especially if they have Mega-pesky with them! Kids... and the next time you shout, it will more than just a can flying towards you, Bass!" The old mathematician fumed and would tear Bass's lips and replace them with a fish's.  
  
"Yeah, yeah, watch out for your high blood pressure you old crook! Although I would sure like to see the old bony hands of yours, even be able to budge anything larger than a can to throw at me" The old wily snarled in defeat and Bass beamed in satisfaction of yet another unnecessary win over his father. The rebellious attitude of his was also part of the package of making him as human as could be imagined. Treble trotted by the remaining dirt from the last encounter with Megaman towards the bed which Bass's brother lay, with support of the railings enclosing the pool of metals which was shaped like a human, it was able to stand unstably and peer over the contents.  
  
Bass heard a muffled whine from Treble which informed him that his pet was feeling rather uneasy about having a stranger in their rundown castle. So, he sluggishly pushed himself away from the balcony and started for the purple creature. He then crouched next to it and stared with awe at the half completed brother of his.  
  
"...wow...all that from just a scratch, how did you manage to accomplish that much within 5 hours?"  
  
Dr. Wily rolled up his sleeves and cackled, "That's because I got to repair a certain black bat every time he gets fortunately, only detached limbs...and I am competent unlike you!"  
  
However, Bass was too engrossed in the structure sleeping in front of him to snap back. And after studying it, he was as utterly disgusted as Treble was.  
  
"Whatever, madman. Hey, I thought you said that I was going to get a baby brother? But this! This robot is about the same size as I am, probably even older! And I ain't gonna have any tea party with this...this...sister!" He backed off the table upon realization.  
  
That set the aged chimp on fire, "Bass! How dare you insult my work and your brother? For your information, I got tired of the bald, Light robot masters and so I decided to stick that endless flow of fire-resistant polymer hair!" A speck of tear fizzled in his eyes as he thought, 'such beautiful hair...' and he placed his greased hand on his silky scalp.  
  
"...you, are,... such a CHEAP-SKATE! That's Centaurman's tail! Awrgh! Have some respect for the dead, man!" Bass choked as he tried to suppress the unknown liquid which was burgeoning in his stomach as if he saw another cockroach.  
  
Dr. Wily shook his head and sent a few dandruffs floating into the air before he straightened himself to explain to Bass in a formal tone for a change. "Prepare to welcome your baby..."  
  
Bass cleared his throat intentionally.  
  
"Alright! Your twin brother by tomorrow, Bass!"  
  
Treble grinned wolfishly back at Bass and they decided to leave their creator alone to speed up the construction of the stranger who would soon aid them in the destruction of their one true enemy, Rock Light. 


	4. A theory of the name of

**"BASS!"  
**  
A sapphire coated boy, no taller than the other boy he seeks, adjusted the energy output of his leg boosters. A sharp bark followed after he landed safely in front of the two robots who were wandering the forest. Both parties lock their eyes, just waiting for each other to initiate another battle. They let a good few minutes to past as they tried to figure out what the other was thinking about. Soon, it got Bass irritated.  
  
"Why if it isn't the city's pet! If it's about the trash at the back of your house, all I can say is that they've asked for it." He waved to dismiss the guilt which Rock was trying to drop onto him.  
  
Rock squinted at his spiteful remark "No, they didn't. I knew that I smelt something fishy." Bass widened his eyes in anger, "Why Bass? We made a perfect dual the last time we joint forces, why revert back to the old pointless rivalry?"  
  
"You're wrong as always, Rock! When will you grow up? Destroying you is why I am made for. Regardless how many times you break my limbs, it's only a matter of time when you will finally be reduced to just another fragment in the soils of the Earth. Hmmm...let's say, 99% by tomorrow." Treble felt braver and took a step forward and growled.  
  
Despite his urge to jump right there and then to prevent what ever was installed for him, he shimmered down a little and let his curiosity get the better of him. "99.9%? Aren't you over-ambitious as always?"  
  
"Indeed I was, but this time, it would take a miracle for you to escape my wrath. And that's why it only takes up 0.1%. Right Treble?" He was answered with a confident yap from his faithful sidekick.  
  
"Come over to the Skull fortress tomorrow and play with us if you're not just a kid as you were made to be. There won't be any absurd robot masters this time, Rock. I'll let you bring as much friends as you wish, for all they do is to delay time as we demonstrate how your death may be. Be there!" Bass facial expression tensed and formed an eerie atmosphere. Without further intimidation, Bass and Treble fell into two bolts of particles and zipped to somewhere which Rock knew that it is completely inane to search him out again.  
  
'Bass...he is the most complicated robot, almost...almost as enigmatic as my dad.' Rock carried the usual worried heart and ignited his leg boosters to get the scoop back to Dr. Light as soon as possible.

* * *

All systems online.............................................................

01010100010010101000100  
01010100001000100110101  
11110010001001011100100

* * *

Enabling optical receptors Running basic language knowledge Personality to be influenced by environment... Optical receptors are receiving images...deciphering reflected visible light rays. External interaction overall controls now passed to subject 000

* * *

"Gya hah hah hah! Rise my ultimate creation, prove to the world my superior intelligence!" A shadowy figure fused into the view of the newborn. A weak feeling surged through his neural circuits...fear. But then, another fresh voice entered the room which flushed away that heart-constricting emotion. The newborn sipped at this strange but fascinating information as if tasting bitter wine.  
  
"Shut up! You're freaking him out!" Bass appeared over the newborn and smirked from one metal sound receptor to another, melting the ice on his back and melting the numbness in his muscles. "So what's his name? Wait, let me name him! I'm not gonna let you humiliate anymore innocent robots' dignity!"  
  
"Silence! Too late, I've already had one in mind and give me ten reasons why I can't name my own work!" Dr. Wily demanded but was not in the mood to accept any. So he spoke before Bass could 'smart' him down again. "He is competent, in camaraderie terms, loyal and suicidal, like Kamikaze pilots... ..." He ended with a japanese accent.  
  
"_Zero_..." Bass just let that word flow out of his mind.  
  
"What?" Dr. Wily was pleasantly surprised.  
  
"What what?" Bass responded without knowing what he had just slipped into the discussion of a less frivolous name.  
  
The light behind Dr. Wily was still emitted steadily and continue to make him look as dark as the rest of the room which were untouched by the substitute lighting due to the breakage from the supply of electricity. Now, all attention was on the partially-conscious 'twin' of Bass.

He peeked glared merrily into the cradle hesitantly and pondered a while longer. Soon, there was no point thinking of another, because, 'Zero' was the perfect fit for the red armored devil.

Trying to flex a muscle or two, the new born decided to lay still for a moment longer. He had the feeling that he may never rest again after he rose.


	5. Orders do not have to be obeyed, crash t...

Just a forest and few blocks away, meanwhile, in the Light house hold: "I don't know, dad. He seemed pretty certain this time. I..."  
  
"Now, now, let's not jump the conclusions here. Rock, son, you know by heart how Bass like to demoralize you before every battles. He's a pretty good enemy if you ask me because, he always let you win." The hulking white- haired man in his golden-age of his life patted Rock's back as a father.  
  
Rock felt lucky all of the sudden, for no reason, lucky to have a 'circus' family. On the thought of family, he recalled something about his brother who was still in stasis and depressed himself over the incident again. "But what about the blueprints? It's a danger to leave them in the filthy hands of Dr. Wily."  
  
That started to knock some urgency into Dr. Light's flight of the imagination while he suited Rock into his different shades of blue battle armors. "Well, the robots of that model have one special thing about them which makes me less worried of. You see Rock, these robots are like Bass, they can choose their life, very human-like. Furthermore, I know that they all have the sense of righteousness like you do, Rock. Now are you convinced?"  
  
"Y...yes, I guess so." Rock unwillingly accepted the temporary comfort but he at least he found out that Bass was based on the first half of the blueprints.  
  
"Not the answer I want, try again, Rock!" Dr. Light took a deep breathe to make himself look heavier than he already was.  
  
"Yes, I am completely convinced!" Rock couldn't stop the tickle of the sight of his ballooned father that he simply burst into a wild laughter. Roll came running in and stipulated the location of a cockroach which she was chasing but one shrugged while the other shook his head. Without much of a choice, Roll gave Rock a baby-peck on his face and turned it beet red.  
  
Bass marched smartly with Treble beside him and Zero hurried behind them, trying his best to keep up with his 'tour guides.' He noticed something wrong and twitched his head to check up on his brother. There lagging further and further behind, Zero stopped proceeding and focused all his attention into his audio receptors.  
  
A drop of sweat formed on the forehead of the intruder. He anxiously rummaged through his mind for an effective escape plan as he had never really been caught while eavesdropping or even spying.  
  
Finally, the trespasser gave in as he couldn't stand the amount of attention mounting onto him. He dropped from his perch on the ceiling and landed with a loud thud. His dead black visors flickered the sun's rays which were sneaking through the broken seams of the scotched walls and reflected off the smooth surface. Pretending to be cool, the grey robot lifted his head to reveal his features which were hidden under his scarlet helmet.  
  
"Hmm, I see that I have been replaced, I'm hurt." Blues sneered.  
  
"Not really, you're my 'part' elder brother and he's my 'full' younger brother. Anyway, prepare to lose your other 'part' younger brother of yours." Bass nattily warned.  
  
"I do admit that this spanking new brother is kind of impressive, considering how he managed to pick up my presence. But I'm sure Rock can take care of him as the way he does to you."  
  
"Oh yeah? Zero can peel that pathetic sissy's skin off with just a flick of his fingers! However, let's just see how Rock's prototype fair in a match with the mighty Bass! Touche!"  
  
Blues' blood pressure shot up a notch by that insult but someone who had just dropped by almost received a heart attack. He quavered the tiles after heaving his ten ton body weight over the melted sill of a window  
  
"I don't see the necessity, Blues. I suggest that you fight this red chilly which silly Wily has made! On second thought, you shouldn't, because it's not honorable to hit a girl, ha ha ha ha!" Gutsman mockingly roared on with his laughter but was shattered as Zero smashed into the chuckling jaws.  
  
His head dented as it got forced against the surprisingly sturdy walls. He wailed even louder when the pressure did not leave the side of his head, instead it strengthened.  
  
Treble whimpered and stuck his tail between his hind legs. Bass was enjoying the gruesome treatment thoroughly but a perturbed feeling struck him deeper and deeper when he saw the insane grin of the devil. Besides that, he also caught a rare glimpse of a twitch on the corner of Blues' mouth. He could tell that Blues was frozen stiff too.  
  
"Zero, enough, he's had enough...Zero? ZERO! Hey cut it out! Crap!"  
  
"...Hey leave, leave Gutzo alone! Pick on somebody of another size, hey!" Blues sputtered.  
  
"I'm your older bro here Zero! You're killing him man! Let up! Zero!"  
  
The metool-helmet cracked along with the inner circuits and Bass panicked at the rate the torture was going. It was not that it was too fast to put a stop, but too slow and the pain was agonizingly inhumane. 


	6. not the ideal brothers

An instant reaction which Bass did was to call forth his buster when all their hollering fell onto deaf ear. Driving out a massive plasma shot, Bass attempted to deactivate Zero there and then. The purple shot sailed Zero to the far end of the corridor, where the walls got caught in the impact. Their frames collapsed, yanking along the pillars to pin Zero when they topple. Fragments clapped enthusiastically and dusts made a run for it.  
  
"Gutsman? Gutsman!" silently, Bass hoped for any smart jokes which the colossal vacant can usually makes but he knew perfectly well that he may never get to hear them again if no medical attention was given. Waving his palm to summon Treble closer, he shakily spoke, "T...Treble, quic...kk, get him t...to Dr. Light!" Treble regained some of his pluck, heaved the nearly headless body onto his back and teleported off. All that was left was a trail of black ooze from Gutsman, Bass and Blues gaping.  
  
The older brother staggered indecisively into the fading mist of dust to retrieve the body which probably has a hole right through it by then. Bass spoke to no one in particular, "Man, is dad gonna kick me in the can for this... Leave it to him to create a robot which is just as insane as he is!"  
  
Blues cautiously crept behind, shield withdrawn.  
  
When Bass had cleared some of the rubbles, he was taken aback at how polished the red armor remained. Other than that, were the two icy emerald green irises locking onto his jet-red ones. Then, Bass let out a relieved and disappointed string of breathe which had choked him as Zero recovered and demanded the best reason for that action by changing the size of his optical receptors.

"Look bro, since this is your first day alive, I'll forgive you, but you must listen to me Zero! Damn it. I'm your older brother and so is Blues!" Bass just ran out of excuses and patience.  
  
"......Dr. Wily's order, all Light bots are to be eliminated regardless of relationships." Zero stated the fact so briefly with a blunt unwelcoming voice that it sent a death chill down Bass's spine.  
  
"No, no, no! Forget about that old shrewd and his stupid orders! If your brother, me, has never obeyed his commands, why should you? Don't let him use you; stick with me, Zero! Let's just get that punk, Rock and we can both ditch this sorry joint!" The rebellious teen offered his hand but Zero rejectedly turn to face anywhere but Bass. All the while, Blues said nothing, did nothing; he was just waiting for his internal generator to thaw his leg joints before he could slit his shield inti his back again and make a run for it. Zero got onto his unbreakable boots and brushed pass Blues in a military manner.

* * *

Due to the unpleasant scenery of the skull fortress, Bass was forced to relocate his battle with Rock on a street. Not just any street, but the one laying quietly throughout the game, the road outside the Lights' humble little 'cottage'.  
  
Bass paced furiously across the road and back again. Zero had his trademark post out, tucking his fist into his alternate elbows and crossing his legs. The stage was set; all that was missing was the prey.  
  
The front door finally yawned, but stopped when it was a quarter wide. Burbles were heard before the door revealed more. A blue helmet combed a bunch of black barbed hair as it got slipped on and another gruff-looking man drew him close to his heart.  
  
"Just do what you always do. Don't worry, Blues was only joking, you know how he likes to exaggerate. Why Gutsman is one of the earliest robots to be built, I'm sure that you can stand up to that new friend that Dr. Wily built." Dr. Light shoved Rock onto the pavement and gave him a wink.  
  
"Thanks dad, I won't let what Blues said get to me." Rock scaled his father's lab coat and gave him a child-smug. Bass frenzied, he thundered over to Rock.  
  
After being scraped off each other, Rock callously dragged and splayed onto the dried tar. He bent his neck upwards to see the tapping foot of Bass, beating away edgily. A menacing snarl snapped from an unknown source, Rock felt his cheeks glowed eerily green as it swayed nearer. Straining his neck further, he found himself dazing at his executor foolishly. All seemed lost, that was it; he was caught perfectly off guard.  
  
"Not now, Zero! We must have manners." Bass swung his arm underneath Zero's raised ones and stopped his beam saber from penetrating Rock before he had some fun with him.  
  
"Bass, the enemy..." Zero established an argument but was cut off again.  
  
"Let me handle this first."

Zero waved glare over to Bass as he toyed with some ideas of how to make this final battle fun.  
  
He tugged Rock to his feet and rested the tip of his unwound buster at his life-long opponent. "Rock! I want you to meet Zero, my brother and still your adversary!"  
  
Rock tweaked his head to the side to get a better view and queried, "Ain't that Centaurman's tail?" No reply was made, except the buster was now pressing dangerously against his forehead.  
  
"You've just made your death 150% more excruciating my dear."


	7. Street fight

"Nothing can save you now, Rock! Zero and I will take any pathetic efforts you make like a breeze." Bass reformed his gloved hand and grasped Zero to his side and leered.  
  
At the same time, the three repelled each other and landed a good few metres away. "It's high-time you throw that armor away Rock! Let us help you!" Bass's shout echoed throughout the deserted neighborhood. The trees quivered in fear of losing their hero, the leaves jumped and some even shielded the rocks from the brewing gale.  
  
An apple dropped from its branch which signaled the cue. Rock and Bass sprinted in a direct collision with each other, Zero kept within attack range just in case Bass needed backup. The peaceful winds on the surfaces were ripped and they roared behind the blurred images. Rock's buster had shifted its colour and ready to tear. A much intricately designed one raised and reflected no light away from it, black...  
  
Both busters received optimum charges from the leg boosters and released two evenly matched plasma shot. Their buster arms reclined in momentum. And about the same time they halted, the ion charges met and rippled all over the entire area. The buildings were distorted for a second or two, before the law of physics heaved them back to their original shape.  
  
Immediately, Bass pounced at Rock, knocking him to his back. He focused both his legs on Bass's torso and put a match to his leg boosters and sent Bass on a short trip. His face glided above the sandy terrain and eventually made a long friction against it. A cloud of dust warped while Zero tore through the atmosphere with his beam saber at a suitable altitude--- around the waist. Rock veered aside and revolved around for a good shot at Zero's flipside.  
  
Locked on, he launched napalm missile to plow right through an optical illusion. In a spur-of-the-moment, Rock found something gnawing at his petite tummy and felt the burning sensation only after it left. His teeth screeched horribly.  
  
Zero was going for Rock's little knee-cap at breakneck speed. All was too smooth until a spinning scarlet shield deflected his Z saber and returned to its owner. There, on the thin platform of garden fences, stood a familiar figure with yellow scarf knotted behind his neck. The figure let it fluttered to enhance his intimidation and tucked his chin into it. A clear challenge was issued from that body language and Zero accepted it almost too easily with a dark grin shadowed by his helmet.  
  
He did a tiger leap, snatching his green 'fangs' from gravity to target at his quarry. Blues shrugged to avoid getting scalded as the swipes got more rapid while flying backwards. The morning glories were clinging onto the wooden pricks, waving as the battle whizzed by, but no one seemed to have the time to attend to them. For all Blues knew, he only need to make one wrong prediction to get killed.  
  
The rush tightened, things were not going as Blues hoped. For a split moment, Blues thought that he saw the edges on Zero's protective head gear curled forebodingly as if the horns of the devil had revealed itself in the mist of enjoying the extreme encounters. Every defense Blues made just thrilled Zero, however, firmed his grip on his shield and baited Zero away from the city.  
  
Rock, on the other hand, was taking his sweet time recovering. He reeled his back and found Bass on a purple stampede. In a blink of an eye, Rock was rammed to the ground once more.  
  
His head was seized between the metallic-black boots "Bottom-line Rock! Let this day be known to the world that I, BASS FINALLY DESTROYS ROCK XAVIER LIGHT!!!"  
  
The wind flurried like tidal waves, bashing the cemented sidewalks. Concrete or vegetation, no matter, they had just witnessed the fall of a warrior in their peaceful neighborhood. The innocence of the street had been stained.  
  
Bass dropped his thick skull to be astounded. From the hips to the chest, all had been blown off, none was spared. He had not released his grip on the pole, neither had he stabbed. The bare edges crackled furiously as the electricity in his circuits lost contact with the rest of his body. Nothing more could be done, Bass was certain. Every strand of muscles pulled was now dangling as Bass fell off the suspension into Rock's arms. Bass felt his mind and memories plunged into a pile of valueless cinders.  
  
Rock quivered and ogled at the state of Bass. He might have taken Bass out, one too many times in fact, but at most, only his limbs came off, and he would return. The assault was too brutal for a robot of his program to chew on, Rock was petrified.  
  
"Bass? BASS! Who did this?" Rock cried. That was a question which was answered effortlessly. Looking dead in the face of the attacker was probably the worst thing to do at anytime or anywhere, because he was immediately apprehended by the lethal impassive eyes.  
  
"Why? I believe that Bass has and will not do anything to deserve this!" Rock probed before getting whipped cleanly at his unguarded chest... 


	8. Kids like Rock shouldn't watch

* * *

Behind the aggressor was the mastermind of Bass's deactivation.

* * *

"How did you like it my little toy? I told you that I will reduce you one day, and I did! Bass, Bass, Bass, if only you were as obedient as the robot masters, there wouldn't be a need for me to lose a fine model like you. Oh well, that doesn't matter now that I've built the ultimate weapon!" The frisky old scientist boasted at Bass's remains, at the same time dampened Rock's hope of a 'Dr. Wily-less peace.'  
  
Rock shuffled on his bottom, trying gain a more securing ground. But the more he retreated, the closer the Wily bot got. Finally, the brief game ended when Rock's back embraced a steel-grilled garden fence. The limited air space was sliced by the sniggering green saber placed in between the two combatants.  
  
"I see that Zero can kill you off with good grace anytime, so I will let you live a while longer to witness my wrath! Rock, say goodbye to everything that you love! Now, you have absolutely no ability to stop me from taking over the WORLD!!!" Dr. Wily swooped higher in his disk- spacecraft, protected by the reinforced glass hovering just a few inches from him with the strongest metallic compound developed as the base of the vehicle.  
  
"Now go Zero! Kill every single mortal who set foot in this dismal city, make them pay for relying on this pathetic robot and denying me as their leader!"  
  
Rock jumped for Zero's boots and refused to budge, "Please! Mr. Zero, kill me instead! No one else have anything to do with this!" But Zero was ten times stronger than Rock, he flicked an arm at Rock and flung him into the garden. "I don't desire to kill right now!" The steel fence ached inwards, displaying a line of upturned soil, bounded by crispy lawn grass, grown specifically for the temperate environment.  
  
Zero ignored, his blonde hair wagged contentedly in the breeze and fiddled his weapon. "Why? ... Why did you make me do it?" He served a glance at Dr. Wily's direction.  
  
"Zero! How dare you question your master! Go destroy the city now!" Dr. Wily frazzled impatiently.  
  
"No! You haven't answered me! WHY DID YOU MAKE ME KILL BASS?" Zero's eyes came into Rock's view and they were unlike those soulless ones when he blasted the guts out of Bass. They were beginning to fuel the burgeoning aggression, the same hatred which Blues had developed when Dr. Wily reprogrammed him.  
  
"I had no control over him Zero! For all I know, he mind as well turn on me and dispose me! He was useless anyway, only half of the new blueprints. But he did teach me something, he taught me that the new models of super robots can work only with the 'righteous' programming completely intact. However, I found a way to overcome that minor setback!" Dr. Wily said as much as he wanted and did not seem interested to explain the obvious to Zero and Rock.  
  
"And the only way..." Dr. Wily flipped opened the hatch of a skull decoration on his control panels, "...is to insert something so deep that no one can touch." The button which was hidden gleamed as the sunlight dispersed away from the seamless surface and mirrored the sinister look as if Dr. Wily was inside it. Then, a finger covered the button entirely and a beep confirmed that his plan has started. No imprints were left, no evidence at all. He reeled and bounced once on the backing of his throne and waited for the inevitable results.

* * *

Somewhere within the complex neural circuits, an indestructible file awakened again. It seeped through the finest crack in the systems, so fast that lightning was no match to its speed. The target files were immediately attacked and seized. All the internal invasions were translated to Zero as unbearable pain. Multiple jolts surged through his mind, he could pinpoint where they started and traveled. The stings lasted for eons, and seconds after seconds, they intensified, not even the numbness could sedate Zero. He slammed both palms against his helmet, clawing desperately, hoping to grab the pain and toss it aside. He couldn't think, couldn't hear himself scream for mercy without words, and couldn't feel himself hurling his upper body ruthlessly.  
  
Rock iced up, he clenched two handful of soil and watched Zero pounding against the air, his golden molt hair straightened and sprayed in all directions while chasing after Zero's tortured mind. Zero could no longer balance himself by staggering; the continuous sharp ring in his files knocked him to his knees. His eyes were still jammed shut, refusing to accept the pain which now fed into his personality files.

* * *

Dr. Wily observed comfortably in his hovering eggshell at the reports coming in from the activated file in Zero's mind. It presented the progress of reprogramming Zero temporary with a simple meter. As the gauge filled almost to its brim, Rock was sitting right in front of Zero's struggles. He glued onto the house in the garden and felt the roughness of the concrete while a white 'W' initial glowed inside the crystal on the triangular armor of Zero's helmet. The blue cloud vibrated in the crystals to bring out the colour of the alphabet. A distinct white tail was attached to the 'W' and surfed in the air as Zero tried to shake out the pain infested within. 


	9. Treble betrays once again

Any life left in the city dwindled like a flame on a wet match. Cars whammed into lampposts while pipes wept out loud after being dug up by tides of energy. Only the gush of that fountain resonated. Buildings were chipped by a large chisel of the size of two whales. The entire city had become a gory mosaic, sprinkled with shredded flesh and painted with tones of one colour in particular, crimson.  
  
"Ahhhh!" Rock's defeated cry pierced the heart of the dead city and echoed on for miles. The temporary control over Zero had ceased and left him in coma out in the middle of a random highway which happened to be there when he fell. It was then when Rock abandoned his pursuit of Zero.  
  
Both of his eyes vibrated while his helmet slanted and blinded the left one. His house was burnt inside out. Metallic carcasses were standing in still frames; they were fossilized while running from the fire. It would have been a funny sight to Rock but he knew very well that it wasn't a harmless comedy.  
  
After scanning hopefully for any sign of life, he came across a familiar corpse which got clamped between a twenty ton of solid wall and a car which Zero threw and missed Rock earlier on. Rock remembered how the poor soul screamed in agony but he just wanted Zero down very much that he shot a plasma shot to silence the innocent man.  
  
A system shock kicked when the pain in his tummy resurfaced.  
  
Rock felt that he should just make sure that it was a robot and that he had not broken the first law of robots, "a robot must not harm a human being." Upon realization, he shrunk away immediately, slapping himself spontaneously. He hated the identity of that corpse, hated it for being so close during his pursuit, and mostly, hated him for creating him...  
  
Back at the skull fortress, a corrupted robot creator stood a few feet away from a parked vacant eggshell. He smiled gleefully over his masterpiece, the mosaic. Two panting shadows emerged rapidly from the unlit section of the roof deck. Before they took form, Dr. Wily already knew who they were.  
  
"Ah, Blues, Treble. Come to join me in my rule over the world?" He spoke irritatingly confidently.  
  
"Cut the act Wily! I wouldn't even if the city suddenly comes alive and Zero had a hair cut!" Blues spiced. He grabbed his right chest to pacify the pain which was chewing at his wound.  
  
"Too bad! Anyway, I only require Zero, he will do whatever I say and did you see how he killed Bass? I'm so proud of him."  
  
Treble ripped forward and pinned Dr. Wily by the shoulders. Blues took the chance to interrogate, "What did you install in Zero?"  
  
"I see you have finally recognized my genius. Usually, you were the one cracking the cases. Not so smart now, aren't you?" Dr. Wily humored but was booed by the silence which Blues and Treble held onto. "Oh, just a specially customized virus."  
  
Blues poked his nose further, "But did Dr. Light not make the blueprints of his new robots include two important things which the robots cannot operate without? Namely the virus-immunity programmes."  
  
"Ha! That old jug! He should have known that I am hundred times smarter than he is. I altered the file into a virus, but to the systems, it's that stupid virus-immunity programme." He cackled into Treble's face and Treble stopped his smell-receptors until his bad-breathe has gone to stink up someone else's nostrils. "Even as we speak, the virus is mutating into a permanent personality of Zero. (Beep beep) Oops, too late! It's 95.4% full already."  
  
"Then, we have no choice but to kill him now. Treble!" Treble went towards Blues and teleported them to Zero's current location.  
  
Their particles rearranged themselves on a tilted highway. Most of the cars had skidded or been thrown off the edge. They could hear the psychotic chortle of the merry river. Treble sprinted for Zero's unconscious body and sniffed for the dirty thing. Blues was not far behind, he was figuring out where the virus's heart was.  
  
"Well, all I know is that it has to be in the head section. And I can't deactivate Zero by killing him, because Dr. Light made these new robots so human-like that they can repair themselves...Damn science!"  
  
Treble could smell it but it seemed to be at a position which was much shallower than what Dr. Wily had been exaggerating. Searching through his memory, Treble found a valuable clue, he recalled the night when Dr. Wily was completing Zero's helmet. He was working on an insignificant chip almost too painstakingly. After which, he welded it into a crystal, which Treble thought was one of his absurd hobby to put the wrong things at the wrong place.  
  
Blues saw the look in Treble's eyes and understood like how Bass always did. 'So that's how Bass communicate with Treble!' Blues was satisfied on solving another mystery.  
  
Without further hesitation, Treble arrested the triangular crystal with his wolf jaws and gave a yank which he had never done before, crushing the 'W' projection into smidgens along as it left its holding. Something rolled around Treble's tongue, it tasted awful and he spat it out wildly. The saliva slithered of the coated silicon chip, and an electricity whipped from it and dissipated--- the virus's progress had paused.  
  
Blues praised the mechanical creature and turned to look for Rock. However, Treble prompted Blues that it wouldn't be wise to leave such a lethal being out on the highway on a Saturday. So Blues grabbed one of Zero's lifeless legs under his arm and dragged. To where? He had not thought of it yet. 


	10. Leaping over to the next century

"**WHAT?!** That was never supposed to happen!" Dr. Wily bounced up and down like a chimpanzee at the monitors. The connection with the virus had been indecisive on putting up a screensaver, grey, white, black...  
  
The festering lab was only lit by the handful of dying computers. Moulds had made the edges of the frames their nesting ground and most had already conquered the best parts.  
  
Drip, drip, drip, the pipes had been leaking over the room where their copper rings had oxidized. Puddles rippled tenderly as they collide. Their voices raced smoothly to the walls and get directed to receptors which appreciate their presence.  
  
"I'm **BROKE!** No robots to help me steal money, damn! I knew I should have kept the wretched puppy outside; he ruined everything!" He cried like a 3 month old baby who just love to cry for attention.  
  
"**NO!** It ain't over! **This ain't over Zero, not by a long shot!** I can sell these junk computers and get me parts! With them, I'll build my final robot for real! Yes, yes, I have the ultimate idea for this robot! One that will be my true successor, force Zero be back on my side no matter how and make sure that the world fear my name! Gya hah ha hah ha!" His laughter erupted throughout the hallways, traveled for days to finally reach Rock's ears as a mere random whisper of the playful wind.  
  
Rock was in a lab coincidentally too. He had returned from his victim's burial site, deep within a lush forest with only an erected stone to display the details which Rock scribbled with one of his finer tipped plasma shots. The laboratory was amazingly alive with diligent computers and unaffected by Zero's '_spring cleaning_.'

The wires crazily swept across the dimensions of the lab, creating a vibrant web radiating from a capsule. It wasn't the fresh air in there which invited Rock to enter, but what did the trick was the curiousity to examine the contents.  
  
"Dear brother...," Rock rested his cheek on the slanted glass and eased his eyelids. "Dad said that you can only be activated after 30 years of tests, to make sure that you won't end up like Bass and definitely not that Devil!" He scraped the glass, producing a screech. Grinning dreamily, Rock pressed himself onto the capsule of a dormant armored teen.  
  
"I'm not sure if I will be there for you, but I will kill the devil for us, for our father! Please, the future peace depends on you." Rock purred and napped over his brother and left a sentence before he drifted off. "I hope that this is your cradle, not... (_Yawn_)... coffin..."

* * *

* * *

Calenders blinked as the sleepy earth drew itself into another century...sleepy because no one had ever seen or heard any trace of robots with free-will... the thing was, no one wish to end up having another Mega-wipe-out City...

21XX:  
  
"Hey, erm...you over there! Get over here and fuel my land chaser." A well- built reploid summoned a delicate blue reploid who was attending to a dismantled weapon. Immediately, he dropped his job and rushed excitedly for the Maverick Hunter Commander.  
  
The commander towered over the jumpy rookie hunter and slapped on a slightly upset face. "S.sir?" The inferior questioned nervously. The tense atmosphere suddenly changed as the commander laughed and patted the blue machine on his back, "Ha ha, don't look so sad, the last time which you are slacking around here, er... what's your name?"  
  
"X...X... ...am I fired? But Sigma sir, I haven't done anything wrong, did I?" His hands shook and knocked the fuel gun continuously against the cylinder's rim, scattering black liquid on his armor.  
  
A magnanimous laughter blew X away, "no, X, I knew how much you wanted to be a hunter, so I got the papers done for you!"  
  
"I...I'm going to be an official Maverick Hunter?! Thank you sir, thank you sir! If there's ever anything..." Before X finished his silly promise, Sigma cut him off with his sandy voice.  
  
"Hush now, just make me proud!" He jogged out of the garage for his next mission. "Remember X!"  
  
X tripped his tongue even more, "o, of, of course commander Sigma, I will do my best!"  
  
The heavy gates ended their exchange of comments. Hunters of all shapes, sizes... and species slide out from under the more heavily damaged vehicles. "X! Remember to do the same to us when you get promoted to commander!" One joked. "You're so lucky, no more garage duties. Well, that depends...anyway; just make sure that the Mavericks won't get us before they have shredded you to the point of no return!"  
  
"I will, I will... I don't know what to say right now..." X pleaded to his colleagues.  
  
"Easy there, you better go report for your first mission now, and drop by if you have the time. I know how busy being a hunter is." A dolphin-like female reploid saved him by shoving him out of the garage. "Good luck, X!" a united cheer boomed and muffled as the titanic doors came together again.  
  
X blinked blankly, at a snail's pace, still processing the events before an announcement came through the speakers. "All available hunters please report to the bridge." Based on his memory, he sprinted at the right direction, reminding himself of the time when he lost his way and met commander Sigma at the bridge. He also expected the mission to be less suicidal than those received by the Special A rank which he heard as stories during garage breaks.

* * *


	11. Don't abandon storage facilities

The sun rolled onto earth, submerging the metropolis into a vermilion ocean. Hectic humans quickened their paces with their family in mind. No one noticed the slight protrusion on the skyline. Following the usual solid concrete structure, the shadow took one last glance before it dived for the next roof and spied no more.  
  
Undetectable by mortal eyes, the figure collided into the shade cast by a rock formation outside the city limits, fixing its optics upon the hunter striding by.  
  
The idling hunter lazily slumped onto a rock which a platform and thought out loud, "What? This is just a false alarm! There's no suspicious character here, in fact, nothing is alive within these rock formations." He leaned and dropped his guard.  
  
A dark, heavy cloud drew over them, while the shadow backed away to bring him into strike range. Once comfortable, it growled silently and went in for a kill.  
  
"Hey! No, my buster, you are going to pay for it you little puppy! **Ahhh!**"  
  
A pillar of light broke through the passing weary cloud and the original colours slowly revisited the site. However, the hunter was the only thing which changed drastically.  
  
"Commander Gamma, it came from that rock formation!" A military-clad hunter called out and readied his buster. Within seconds, the reploid-in-command jogged up to his subordinate's side with the rest of the troop scurrying behind. The scout pointed at the direction from which the cry originated from. Without any thinking, he went forth to be greeted by the gory sight of his dismantled hunter.  
  
"That Maverick, I'll deal with it personally, tell the troop to stay. This wouldn't take too long." After reassuring the rank B rookies, Gamma advanced steadily deeper into the rock formations. A few turns in the maze later, he found himself at the entrance of an abandoned storage facility. By pressing his palm against a pad, the embedded building granted his access and released the locks on the gargantuan 'hell' gates. 'The Mavericks doesn't want us to find something important to them; they are guarding **too** ferociously.' He thought while the dusty air all rushed out at once.  
  
The doors prevented further entries and left Gamma alone to his work. His boots pounded hardly on the worn out tiles as stood his ground. He was confronted by two glowing-yellow glares; the shadow was guarding something.  
  
"Hmm...I've never seen such a model of reploid before, but I can tell that most of its parts are outdated, should be easy to handle." He waved and agreed to have a tussle with the sturdy 'Maverick'. The shadow shed the dark 'cloak' and revealed its body proudly as it did for over a hundred years ago. A purple wolf took form and darted for Gamma's throat. Gamma felt the gush of air pressuring his way and a lightning quick reflex; he caught the neck of the 'torpedo.' The commander simply swung it into a stack of armored crates. The old wolf whimpered and slipped into a comma.

Gamma snorted at its designs, "what an outdated Maverick. This just shows how desperate the Maverick virus is nowadays! Now let's see what it was guarding so dearly from the hunters."  
  
He burrowed into the endless storage until he found an inactivated reploid which must have been thrown recklessly into the crates. "Poor kid, he must have been the hunter which we sent here to investigate last week." Gamma popped an energy-fuel can out of his leg holster and fed the reploid.  
  
The energy traveled throughout the reploid and jolted him back to conscious. He pushed Gamma far from him and reached for his weapon but was disappointed by the absence.  
  
His files only wanted to get rid of everything, living or breathing. They drove him at Gamma, and a battle for the strongest began.

"Damn, he must have been infected. Well, he shouldn't be that hard, and considering that he **is** a kid after all." However, what all his assumptions were opposed by the speed of the Maverick; he could not keep track of his movements and was forced to give up on that tactic. Breaking free from his stance, he tried to gain a higher ground but a brutal jerk at his leg spoiled his efforts and tore it off. His chin slammed first, followed by his body. The Maverick threw the wasted part onto the highest stack of crates where it hit the head of the rookie hunter whom they sent there the week before.  
  
Gamma squeezed his cheeks with his forehead and heaved himself over to his back when the Maverick got too close and fastened the Maverick under the burden of his weight. The Maverick let a little squeak escape his lips but reacted immediately and stuck his hand beneath the position of Gamma's heart. Gamma was aware of the change on the Maverick's arm and struggled to stand, only to find his leg unable to support that action. The buster was fully arranged and a shot blasted through his metallic heart, rendering his whole life into a blur and ending it right there and then. Fortunately, he managed to send one last distress signal to his troop and they ran with their tails between their legs.

* * *

Author: Thanks for that encouragement blueknightX14, I really needed that. :) 


	12. Burning tensions

...The buster was fully arranged and a shot blasted through his metallic heart, rendering his whole life into a blur and ending it right there and then. Fortunately, Gamma managed to send one last distress signal to his troop to run with their tails between their legs.

* * *

With panic, they ran even faster then they were built to be. Before they could catch their breath, they found themselves weeping in front of a commander from _Unit 17_.  
  
"**Stop acting like babies you buncha rookies**, I'm sure that commander Gamma is just pulling your legs," Sigma joked.  
  
"Please sir, this is serious, we heard him scream like a lady with a cockroach in her basket!" A desperate rank B hunter prompted Sigma sophisticatedly.  
  
"A** lady** you say? Hmmm... this is serious; As much as Gamma love to come up with the best pranks, he will never go to that extent with them. Rookie, give me any details related to this Maverick!"  
  
His demands were a bit too much for the little 'ants in panic.' They mingled with no time to spare for a good few minutes until one reported to Sigma of their conclusion.  
  
"Well?" The commander tapped his fingers in rhythm on his regularly polished titanium desk.  
  
"Sir, we have absolutely no idea." He chattered without any break in between.  
  
"What? Doesn't the operator brief every hunter on the Maverick's detail before every mission?" He shifted his volume almost too rapidly for the rookies' audio receptors to adapt to; and they all took a big step backwards, trying to be the closest to the exit in case of 'fire.' "Doesn't anyone have any idea?"  
  
An almost inaudible voice squeaked from the herd of petrified sheep which seemed to be muted by tons of cotton.  
  
"Speak up! If I have no idea of that Maverick, I will be sending my men on a suicide mission!" Sigma's boom toppled every single reploid in that troop.  
  
"Sir, the Maverick has been hunted down with ease, Gamma did. He messaged us about finding a hunter which was sent there last week and was in the process of reviving him, Sir!" The inferior shouted on top of his voice but unlike Sigma's lion roar, his was filled with tears and it sounded more like crying for home while suffering in a boot camp. "After that, he sent us that final signal for us to seek a Maverick hunter with finer skills then he does."  
  
"Finer skills?" A brave soul questioned his comrades' 'suicidal speech' with two equally jelly-soft eyes.  
  
The rookie who was saving their delicate behinds burst nervously, "Better...higher...superior...**whatever!** Just get that Maverick before it gets me!"  
  
"**Silence! All of you!** This is not the way which a Maverick hunter should be! We must be selfless, sacrificing, we must think of the ones we protect, the innocents that contributed to the rise of the Maverick hunters!" The lecture washed the bleating rookies from head to toe. Little did they notice the rookie from Sigma's unit who decided to eavesdrop on them, had been inspired by the words of his commander.  
  
"Alright then, I shall face this powerful Maverick myself, since the only detail I got is that none of my hunters will be able to defeat it." Sigma marched out and detected his loyal follower scrambling to pretend that he was just passing by.

He smiled, "X, I apologize, I just can't bring you along on this mission, because, I cannot guarantee my own safe return. So if anything happens to me, promise me that you will ensure that every single Maverick gets a good kick in their shins." Sigma threw X a thumbs-up and a firm wink.  
  
X wiped the sweat droplets excreted when he was mentally strangling him for being caught so easily and reaffirmed his noble commander that he can rest in peace if necessary. "Yes, Commander Sigma, but I have complete confident that you will return to lead us once more."  
  
Sigma nodded felt encouraged and thoroughly surprised, 'I should help more rookies; they bring me the greatest joy at times like this.' Leaving the thought, Sigma pondered on how to deal with that Maverick.

X watched with an urge to be his commander's partner some day and learn the true values of being a Maverick hunter. Silently, X spoke to the fading image of commander Sigma, 'Please, he is a good man, let him live.'  
  
Behind X, Gamma's troop collapsed on one another like a roman pillar. They were awing at how nice the furious commander treated his own unit. "Hey rookie! Commander Sigma really likes you; I think he sees potential in you. Lucky..." Another hunter whistled as he got in a suitable position, forgetting that he was squashing the smallest hunter at the lowest position until he groaned.  
  
"You guys sure can 'cave in' in style! Having the smallest one at the bottom, hmm...who knows, he may be the strongest around." X played with the troop.  
  
"Yeah, we practiced a lot," the heaviest among them giggled.  
  
"**GET OFF!!!**" The tiny one soured.  
  
"Stop fooling around! Especially you, rank B hunter!" A higher ranked hunter stormed from a distant. His chain of rifle bullets chuckled at the humiliation. His giant canon, which was mounted purposely on his right shoulders, just shot a cold gleam at the 'monkeys.' He was making his status clear to them by glaring down his nose---if he had one.

"Listen up! Commander Sigma is away from base and that makes me in charge of you monkeys. From now till the commander returns, you must address me as commander Vile! Now, I order you to patrol the south wing!" At once, none of them were still motionless but were already half way to their station.

X frowned secretly but a freezing hand grabbed his arm, "Watch it!" Vile hissed and left to frighten more rookies. Even with a mile of corridor between the two favourite hunters of Sigma, X could still feel the icy jabs pulsating upon his spine just like Vile was breathing down the back of his neck.


	13. Wrong move

He had been winding for hours on an absurdly large military truck with little knowledge of his whereabouts. All that he could see was the ocean of sickening sand after sand. "Are we there yet, Private?" Sigma moaned over his enthusiasm's death.

"Sorry sir, we took a wrong turn back there, we should be back to Metropolis in no time!" The driver pleaded.

"Great...the Maverick probably is having a tea party with the humans there." Sigma slumped onto a crate with his back and hung there until the vast sand carpet started to shake the tough rubber on the tires. Rolls of sand start to compress with each other as they got closer to the rock formations, very soon, the truck grew tired of its driver who got his license off the back of a cereal box and put its foot down.

"Sorry sir, that's as much as the truck could handle, she's exhausted," the driver yapped as he drags his bulky body out from under the belly of the truck. The truck gave one last sigh before settling down for a tan.

"Private, she... I mean the truck would be able to handle a truck driver with a better sense of directions than you! Hell, you tore it through the desert when the rock formations are just outside the city limits. And guess where the Maverick Hunter Headquarters is, JUST A HIGHWAY AND A FORK ROAD AWAY FROM THE CITY LIMITS!" Sigma jumped like a chimpanzee with its split-ends on fire---he must have done that quite often.

The poor driver suffocated in Sigma's fumes but manage to indicate the entrance with his chubby innocence. That one look defeated Sigma and he just sighed, "I apologize, private, desert heat...gets me every time." He shrugged and trampled his way to the two other rookies who were doing their shift on observing the gates and activities audible through them.

"...It's been awfully quiet for the past few minutes..." the white helmeted reploid whispered to the dusty brown bear-like reploid who was tucked cozily behind a khaki rock. "Yeah, but it is better than hearing the sound of crunching metals and highly lethal plasma shots spitting into whoever's dead in there...Oh, Commander Sigma, Sir!"

"What's the situation?" He walked by them hastily. The two hunters exchanged worried expressions and tried to squeeze some confidence into their veins. "Sir, the maverick is still in there... do you need back up?"

They waited but Sigma was not in the mood to reply. Hands in between the crack in the metallic walls, he pried them open; unlike Gamma who needed to unlock the gates systematically. The strength applied to haul the barriers apart slightly impressed the idling empty shell, extremely vaguely though. The insignificant amazement of the Maverick's attention fell back into its original arrogant intimidation. (Sagging of the eyelids) That insulted the fearsome Commander who single-handedly raised Unit 17 from a fragile vacant eggshell to the most effective Maverick hunters in this part of the galaxy.

Sigma heard the doors slammed back as it was programmed years before some smart guy decided to abandon a good piece of facility. He needed to lecture that Maverick like he did to Gamma's 'circus actors.' Faster than the speed of electricity, he unbolted his vocal organs but the feeling of skin brushing skin paralyzed him. Panic overwhelmed, Sigma was trying to reconnect to his nerves and search for the cause. All of the sudden, white flashes were released and retracted over and over again. Fortunately, he was built for quick reflexes and he found himself dodging these things which he hadn't had a clue of. That bought him some time to access the reason behind his cranial lag. The white stripes soon blended into a 'blizzard,' too thick for air to sneak into the horizontal hurricane swirling around his head. In the eye of the 'storm,' he finally made visual contact with the 'weather man.' "What in the devils? When had this Maverick moved?"

While the howl of the air being shredded dragged on, Sigma could slowly locate the voice the Maverick. He was not speaking in words, but the sounds produced were enough to help Sigma conclude that he has met his match.


	14. The granny of all Maverick virus

The seemingly endless attacks had no flaws, however, the aggressor decided to give his prey a chance to breath. He could tell that this commander was better than the previous one. Slowing his down speed, the Maverick drew a circle around himself in the air with his high-quality metal plated boot. It slammed into the victim's skull and made the teeth saw horribly against each other.

Fortunately, Sigma was specially built to last longer than any other reploid. The Maverick curled the corners of his mouth and eyes, getting more excited each time Sigma resisted to stay down. Sigma noticed that this Maverick is unlike the past common ones he had encountered. The Maverick had shown eagerness to have a fair fight - an honorable opponent.

Sigma seized the opportunity and hooked a punch at the torso. Almost immediately, the roar of an impact of a body and a wall, situated half a kilometre from him, raced into his ears.

The force did not tame the beast, for he bounced out of the crater and burst forth for Sigma. Sigma stood his grounds, as if magnetized fully the earth's polar. His mind was, by then, submerged in the fight. The 'flame' was going for another chain of punches but Sigma clenched the Maverick's knuckles, swung him backwards and thrusting upwards thereafter to drive his head into the ceiling.

Crumbs of concrete dived down impatiently while dust clouds took their time by parachuting to land safely. All seemed quiet, all too quiet. However, Sigma was easily convinced that the Maverick has no more strength to battle on, he settled on retiring for the day. Just as quick as he turned his back, the Maverick stirred, borrowing the strength of a pipe running next to him to tow his head out and ungratefully ripped a chunk and declared it, his weapon. Sigma felt uncomfortable after being mocked at by the Maverick's grin of enjoyment. He dropped gracefully and rushed for Sigma, turning his pipe into a sword.

Sigma calmed himself to embrace the attack with full confidence while drawing his own proper sword, shook it to life and darted into a 'head-butt' type of tournament. The presence of air provided resistance to Sigma's great body but the Maverick simply propelled swiftly. As the distance between them brought them physically closer and closer, Sigma grew more worried about the odds of his survival; one poke in his chest and he will be gone for good. He knew that the Maverick had probably smelt the fear burgeoning within the gorge of his troubled mind. 'Can X really able to handle my elite force? Or was Vile doubt on X's naïve nature right?'

* * *

That sudden flash caused Sigma's fingers to wobble when he started to drift off but he pulled back in time to witness the Maverick signaling that he had won the fight before it started. Sigma dodged the flying pipe which suddenly changed into a boomerang in the hands of the Maverick. Yet, not fast enough to save the arm with the 'light stick.' Oil fluttered behind the Maverick, he loosened the grip on his prize – the torn arm. 'No, no, I'm the best warrior there is, he didn't, my hand... in his, he snatched my...with bare hands?!' He dazed off and fell from grogginess.

The Maverick tossed aside one of the important part of Sigma's tool of success. Squatting next to Sigma, he spat into the pathetic commander. The grin told Sigma that he was going to receive more pain than what Gamma had. 'There goes my career, my dignity ...' He gave up.

From then on, it had been all bad visions and poorly outlined images of the facility. Surges of electrical shock popped and increased continuously. While on the other hand, the Maverick finally got a toy after a hundred year of deactivation. Hours passed lazily, unwilling to push the hands on every clock manufactured since the first had been invented. 'Why does he not kill me...what the? He stopped? For what reason?' Sigma felt his neck permitted to stretch, a relieve floated throughout his body as he thought, 'someone must have saved me... but wait, why is it that I can still hear laughter? The laughter of the Maverick?'

His neck started to follow the process like the way his hand came off earlier on. The Maverick dawn his eyes on the wrecked reploid, exposed circuits boards and flaccid wires. He cocked his head and snickered to an imaginary crowd on the ceiling. He had had sufficient fun and saw no need for further bloody 'fireworks.' Sigma understood the intention of the Maverick's release of his dismal life and thanked whoever in heaven. Not visible to any life form, the lock around Sigma's neck laid off the pressure slowly but surely.

Sigma wanted to leave real badly, knowing that hell had given him an extension of his life, but it was best to let the Maverick do things his way first. Out of the blue, the cold sweaty hands just disappeared and Sigma was surprised by the sniveling of the Maverick; the Maverick was in pain instead.

* * *

In the subterranean part of the Maverick's tortured mind, an argument was brewing. A hissing voice yelled with an obvious superior status at the Maverick under his control.

_What do you think that you are doing? Kill that low life!_

**No, I've had enough.**

_Why you little...you don't owe him anything!_

**Stop that ringing!**

_Not until you kill him!_

**Not until that pain has ceased.**

_Then you will do it?_

**Fat hope GRANNY!**

_What?! You've asked for it!_

**Stop!!!**

_For hundred years of mutating in you, I've spread my reign over many others of your own kind!_

**Get out, no wait... GET A LIFE INSTEAD!**

_I've had complete control over them, all their susceptible minds die, and none retained any free-will. But you..._

**What? I can't hear you!**

_I SAID, WHAT'S KEEPING ME FROM EMPTYING YOU FROM YOUR SYSTEMS?_

**WHAT?**

_WHY DO YOU GO AGAINST THE INEVITABLE?_

**WHAT?!**

_SILENCE! I WILL NOT ALLOW ANYMORE HUMILIATION TO DAWN UPON ME, NOW SUFFER FOR YOUR DISOBEDIENCE!!!_

* * *

Meanwhile, Sigma observed nothing more than a Maverick crashing around with an enormous headache which he perhaps will never have a chance to experience.

'He's in pain...I wish to thank him for his mercy but... he is a maverick for crying out loud! Maybe... I can knock him unconscious and relieve...no capture him.' Sigma snapped, he had a glimpse of the strange triangular crystal glowing every once in a while. He gambled, and channeled all the rest of his energy directly into his last functioning arm and transferred them into that crest on the reploid's helmet.

The fist burrowed into its structure, every single blue fringe left on the edges of the helmet caved in and the fragments stabbed into Sigma's robust gloves, they pinched.

The Maverick's vision fuzzed and lost touch with reality. Sigma couldn't care, he crawled for the mammoth doors and keyed the unlocking codes like Gamma would and stomped into the open disgraced by the amount of damage inflicted on his once invincible body.

"Look! It's commander Sigma! Now we know that nobody is a match to the Maverick hunters!" The two rookie hunters were still there, the other rejoiced, "Yeah, we can always count on commander... commander? Are you alright?" His face sunk at the state of their trump card. Sigma felt irritated and shoved the unsuspecting hunters aside, leaving just a straightforward task for them to execute.

"Have that Maverick brought back, I want him studied!" Sigma grasped even tighter on the wound of the missing limb. 'That Maverick must be the source of the entire virus epidemic, he must be! But his systems... so intriguing, such workmanship...'


	15. X's 1st mission

"Get down!"

"What?"

"**I SAID**..."

Wham...**BOOM**!!!

_"He'z a goner."_ A cockroach-like reploid (Charoah) had all four of his available limbs over his eyes and mouth._ Creak_. Next to the insect, was a reploid (Flona), probably based off a tree shaded her eyes with mechanical vines of green highlights. The feminine plant rustled, _"That Maverick went through that poor fellow with a Ghitium Riolide Plasma! Sure he's a goner!"_

_"Yez...he waz a definite fool, trying to take on that Maverick while the entire troop kept hollering at him to duck. Oh well."_ Charoah shrugged the upper two limbs and used a third one to ease the itch on his wing-armor. _"Would you look at that Maverick, itz compozt of all cruzhed junk and no frezhener! If it ain't infected, I muzt get to know 'em."_

As the troop devised on another plan, the Maverick lumbered through a playground, flattening the swings, then followed by every children's favourite, the slide.

_"Flona, you go in by le Ol'carousel, distract de fat-trash, while de rest of us get his rear,"_ their captain briefed. Twitching his tread-thin moustache, he led several men in hope of bringing the Refuse back to the dumpster. _"Touché!"_ Shushed his dried lips .

Flona waited a while longer to gather her guts and leapt over the carousel to merge with the surrounding real cyborg-plantation. When the Maverick was utterly confused by her disappearance, she dive from her suspension to give the hotchpotch, a brilliant swing of her roots. The kick was effective, but was not long enough for her comrades to reach the rear. So, out of no other choices, she attempted to mesmerize the Maverick by dancing. The Maverick shook off a few loose parts and immediately relocated Flona. The ballet displayed a curtain of elegant moves, moves which put restless children to sleep, especially reploids. Yes, even the reploids. Most of them, who were caught in her heavenly sweeps, were all the Maverick hunters who had stationed themselves behind the enemy. The captain bolted for the dazzled Maverick and cheered,_ "Now my men...men?"_

With the safety of his men in mind, he cancelled that crucial action. The Maverick heard the snapping of branches as the captain landed carelessly and swiped Flona into the glass window of an unfortunate bank. The siren went off.

_"Flona! Ai Mama, this ain't well."_ The French reploid shook from the impact. The second he fell from the tremor, the Maverick released a Githium-reinforced plasma at the line of sitting-ducks. Golden crispy, fried hunters.

The bank's alarm kept whining, followed by a sweet scent of roasted reploids.

Over the fences, a reploid who was claimed to be dead just a moment ago shot his head out of the indentation in a partially full rubbish bin. Flies scattered in all directions, one continued to circle the smudge on the reploid's helmet._ 'Oh my, I must have been unconscious for a long time, only the captain is left.'_

_"Captain, hang on, I think I can ..."_ He charged the ions on the lens of his buster.

"_Erm...what's your name again? Just get out of 'ere and save your own tooshee,"_ The concerned captain chased his last men away from the scene. _"Call the commanders; this Compost is too much for B-rank hunters! Tell me mama that I love her."_

"_I'm X! Don't say such things, captain, it ain't over till I have been taken down! I think I can put a hole through the Maverick!"_ His buster started to whine as the power reached its limit. In a sphere of electrical impulses and magnetic induction, an average-looking plasma was put to the test. It skimmed the struggling captain on his nose, and probably took a few strands of his moustache along before running into the heap of recyclables.

The sun darkened the growling Maverick as it stood heavier than never, making the poor captain beg for a miracle. After some time of waiting for the Maverick to move, nothing had changed. The two hunters warily withdrew closer to each other for security to finally see the grey glare on the Maverick.

_"Magnifico! X, you've just got your first Maverick, sonny!"_ The captain poured his weight onto X's shoulders with his arm. X cringed and smiled confidently, _"I...I guess I did...erm, captain?"_

_"Yes, sonny?"_

_"Please don't call me sonny, thank you."_

_"And a well-mannered one you are! Hor hor."_ The captain's whiskers wiggled with amusement.


End file.
